Butt Backs Tuchel to Make Tough Decisions at World Cup
Nicky Butt has never been one to tiptoe around a subject. He doesn’t start now.
The former England midfielder is convinced Thomas Tuchel will be ruthless at the 2026 World Cup – even if it means benching the biggest names in his squad – and believes Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers could force Jude Bellingham out of the starting XI if the Real Madrid man starts slowly.
Bellingham heads into the tournament after a stop-start, injury-hit season. A shoulder problem, then a hamstring issue, broke up his campaign, limiting his rhythm even though he still racked up 40 appearances in all competitions, starting 30 of them. The numbers look solid on paper; the season itself felt anything but smooth.
Rogers, by contrast, arrives in full colour.
The 23-year-old has just driven Aston Villa to a Europa League triumph and a fourth-place finish in the Premier League, returning 13 goals and 11 assists across those two competitions. His rise has not gone unnoticed at international level either: since his debut in 2024, he has featured in 13 of England’s 14 matches, steadily moving from intriguing option to genuine contender.
Butt can see the fault line clearly.
Speaking to Paddy Power, he listed the usual headline acts – “[Harry] Kane, [Declan] Rice, [Bukayo] Saka and [Jude] Bellingham are the superstars” – but then pointed firmly at Rogers as the one who “could be the one that really stands out”.
For Butt, the entire dynamic hinges on Bellingham’s opening to the tournament. If the Madrid midfielder explodes into form, the hierarchy holds. If he stutters, the door swings open.
“It’ll depend on how Jude Bellingham starts the tournament,” Butt said. “If he starts the tournament on fire, then it's different. But if he's not on the ball or Harry Kane needs to be coming or he’s not scoring goals…”
That’s where Rogers comes in. Tuchel, Butt argues, has little interest in reputations.
“I think the starting XI picks itself and he won’t get in straight away,” Butt admitted. “But if Bellingham's not flying, one thing about Tuchel is that he doesn't give a f*ck about player egos or the perception. If Bellingham, for example, is not playing well, he'll take him out of the firing line and put Rogers straight in.”
Rogers, in Butt’s eyes, is built for Tuchel’s England. A natural fit for the No 10 role, comfortable finding pockets of space and striking from range, he carries the profile of a classic tournament bolt-from-the-blue.
“Rogers is a [Thomas] Tuchel kind of player, he likes him a lot in that number ten role. He can score goals from outside the box,” Butt said, noting how often World Cup matches are decided by long-range efforts when deep-lying defences crowd the area.
The former Manchester United man sees more than just a squad player. He sees a potential game-changer.
“I think Rogers has got the X-factor. He scores goals, he started to come really good towards the end of the season. He started the season on fire, he had a bit of a blip but then he came again. I've got a sneaking feeling that he could come off the bench a few times and score some really important goals. He could be the difference in a lot of games.
“You could then see someone who could become England's best player in the tournament, he's got that much ability. People can go in as a bit-part player and come out being a superstar. It's happened with so many players over the years.”
Doubts over England – and a warning for Tuchel
For all his enthusiasm about Rogers, Butt is far less bullish about England’s overall chances.
He sees a young squad, heavy expectations and a brutal set of external factors – heat, humidity, travel – that could sap the life out of even the most talented side.
“I personally think it would be a success to get to the final stages - the semi or the final,” he said. “But even then, with our expectations as a nation, I think even a semi might be seen as a failure.
“I don't think it would be. We’ve got a young squad, it's going to take time. I can't see us winning it. With the conditions over there, the heat and humidity, all the travel, it just doesn't seem possible. I'm not confident.”
The bar, though, remains high. Butt is clear where failure begins.
“A failure for me would be obviously not getting out of the group stages. If we don't get to the semi, some would see that as a big failure especially with all the talent that we've got and because of those that we’ve left at home.”
Those omissions sharpen the scrutiny on Tuchel. Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Harry Maguire, Trent Alexander-Arnold – all left out despite their profiles and pedigree, even if, as Butt notes, they have been out of form.
“They’re out of form but he’s not picked Phil Foden, not picked Cole Palmer, not picked Harry Maguire or Trent Alexander-Arnold. So if we don’t get to the latter stages, the finger will be pointed straight at Thomas Tuchel.
“If that happens I think he'd be gone. Both from The FA side and he'd be gone personally as well. He'll want to get back into club football, he looks like a real club football manager, day to day he wants to be involved in it. Obviously the England job came along, it's a massive job, it's one of the biggest jobs in the world. But if it's not a success, I think both parties will want to part ways.”
Tuchel, then, walks into this World Cup under no illusions. Progress to the latter stages might be the minimum requirement. Anything less, Butt suggests, and the experiment ends.
Brazil, Argentina, Spain – and the shadow of Mexico
Butt’s scepticism about England is matched by his conviction about who stands in their way.
He keeps circling back to the same trio: Brazil, Argentina, Spain. And one more name: Mexico.
“I honestly do think because of the conditions and the heat and the humidity, it’s going to be really tough. We could play Mexico in Mexico City in the last 16,” he said. The prospect of England facing the hosts in that cauldron lingers as a very real hazard.
On outright favourites, Butt’s instincts go traditional.
“It'd be crazy not to look at Brazil or Argentina as favourites,” he said. Brazil, he concedes, no longer boast the galáctico roll call of Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Roberto Carlos, nor the same density of superstar names, but the weight of history and climate familiarity still counts.
“Spain, for him, sit right alongside them.”
“Spain are the favourites and you can see that as they can handle the hit and they'll have a big following. I could see that they'd be there or thereabouts, but for me I've just got Brazil and Argentina stuck in my head. I just think it'll be them.”
So England head into 2026 with a young core, a demanding manager and a rising wildcard in Rogers, all framed by a former international who doubts they can go all the way.
If Tuchel really is ready to ignore egos and rip up reputations, the question is no longer whether England have enough talent. It’s which version of this squad – and which version of Jude Bellingham or Morgan Rogers – the world is about to see.
